Nomads are Busting Out All Over!

Two current New York City exhibitions may be of interest to readers of this blog:

At the Flushing Town Hall through April 29 is "Interwoven Worlds: Exploring Domestic Nomadic Life in Turkey."

"Interwoven Worlds" highlights hand-made carpets and textiles for which the Turks are celebrated. Beautifully crafted pieces are presented within two recreated dwellings – a nomadic tent and an Ottoman-style home– to weave together the rich traditions of Turkic peoples across space and time. The textiles are complemented by ancient ceramics, glassware and metal-ware.

On the one hand, depending on where you live, it may be quite a slog out there, but on the other hand you can make it a complete fun day out with a visit to Xi'an Famous Foods or any of the other zillions of tasty Flushing restaurants.

In Manhattan, at NYU's Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, is "Nomads and Networks, the Ancient Art and Culture of Kazakhstan," through June 3.

Nomads and Networks is the first U.S. exhibition to provide a comprehensive overview of the fascinating nomadic culture of the peoples of eastern Kazakhstan’s Altai and Tianshan regions from roughly the eighth to first centuries bce. With over 250 objects on loan from Kazakhstan’s four national museums, the exhibition provides a compelling portrait that challenges the traditional view of these nomadic societies as less developed than sedentary ones. Artifacts on view in the exhibition range from bronze openwork offering stands, superbly decorated with animal and human figures; to petroglyphs that marked important places in the landscape; to dazzling gold adornments that signaled the social status of those who wore them.

Read more about this exhibit from the New York Times.

I have no idea about Upper East Side restaurants, but I'm planning to combine my trip to the ISAW with a visit to the Central Park Conservatory Garden.  (East side of the park,  entrance at 105th St.)